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Tamas "Gadget" Etterson, magic item-maker
This NPC is middle-aged and has had his attributes adjusted accordingly. Tamas "Gadget" Etterson CR 12 Male Gnome wizard 5/maester 5/expert 3 N Small humanoid (gnome) Init +0; Senses Listen +5, Spot +3 Languages Common, Gnome, Draconic, Elven, Goblin ----- AC 11, touch 11, flat-footed 11 (+1 size) (+4 dodge against giants) hp 14 (10d4+3d6-13) Resist ??; SR ?? Fort +3, Ref +4, Will +11 (+13 vs. illusions) ----- Spd 20 ft. (4 squares) Ranged random thrown alchemical solution +8 (1d6 acid) Melee unarmed +8 (1d2-2 nonlethal) (provokes attacks of opportunity) Base Atk +7; Grp +1 Atk Options Grab magic weapon Class Spells Prepared (CL 9): All of Etterson's spells are going into the manufacture of magic items; none are available for combat. Spell-like Abilities (CL 1): Gnomish abilties ----- Abilities Str 7, Dex 11, Con 9, Int 18, Wis 16, Cha 14 Feats Appraise magic value, brew potion, craft magic weapons and armour, craft rod, craft wand, craft wonderous item, scribe scroll, skill focus (profession: magic item manufacturing) Skills appraise +10, bluff +8, craft: alchemy +14, decipher script +5, diplomacy +12, hide +4, knowledge: arcana +20, listen +5, profession: magic item manufacturing +22, sense motive +9, spellcraft +20, use magic device +6 Possessions Spellbook, inkpen, ink x3, paper x12, fine clothes, 14d12 gp, 16d8 sp, 8d8 cp Spellbook For crafting purposes, Etterson's spellbook has any spell required. Notes "Hello, and welcome to 'Gadget' Etterson's Arcane Materiel Supply. I'm Mr. Etterson and I'm here to make sure you are matched up with exactly the magic item you need. Weapon, wand or whatever, I can make it for you." Etterson is an extraordinarily successful crafter of magic items inhabiting the rich section of the land's capital, who is quite possibly the most proliferous and well-known manufacturer of such goods in the known area. Once nothing more than a young apprentice to the local alchemist in some backwater village, the now combovered, bowtie-wearing and slightly overweight middle-aged gnome is still bright-eyed and sharp-minded. Much of this can be owed to his appreciation and talent in professional organization as much as his magical aptitude; while he his magical designs are not wholly unremarkable, perhaps his greatest invention is the magical assembly line. No one really knows how he does it, but in organizing dozens (and later hundreds) of modestly skilled mages he is able to be the greatest supplier of magical goods. Able to provide magic items extremely quickly and seemingly unburdened by XP costs, it's not wonder Etterson is the grandest name in the business. "So that's a vorpal longsword of speed, a quickened greater metamagic rod, and a mirror of lifetrapping, yes? Great, I'll have it ready for you by the morning." The political figures in the capital simultaneously love and loathe Etterson. Though his production brings in cartloads of money for the city, he is seemingly unsatisfied with mere manufacturing monopoly and has his fingers in politics, as well as almost every other area of the city. Etterson is no naive entrepeneur and is a cutthroat businessman; economy of scale means that Etterson can afford to undercut almost any magic item supplier that tries to move into town and his scheming mind makes him one of the blackest hearts in big business. Although by no means living a modest existence, the fact that most of money is tied up in business project belies his economic power; if all his assets were totalled, Etterson would be worth a staggering amount of money somewhere in the range of several million gp. "Tez'la, you simply don't understand Gnomish humour." Etterson's status among his arcane peers varies, but mostly among the spectrum between mere condescension and extreme revilement. Most consider him a sellout with mind for nothing but profit, who entered the arcane arts as a tool for economic success rather than the honest love of the art that most wizards, sorcerors or similar practitioners share. His company's aggression in squashing significant competitors and establish a near-total monopoly on the magic item market has earned him personal animosity with a number of individual mages as well, and the same could be said for his cold-heartedly mercenary dealings with experts in the field. Arcane theorist Tez'la, for example, bears a smoldering dislike for the magnate and will furiously (if inarticulately) denounce every iota of his character if provoked on the subject. The exact source of this animosity has been lost to the midsts of time, but rumour involves someone pushing themselves to the ends of endurance to meet a deadline, broken promises for a huge sum of money, and Etterson adding the brilliant energy weapon enchantment to his repertoire. "I find out what the world needs. Then, I go ahead and invent it." Though gnome in race, anyone in the know of gnomish culture can easily see Etterson has gone quite native in his human-majority surroundings. "Gadget" is his only nickname, one he chose for himself to market his image as a magic engineer. Though not without a sense of humour, he has none of the trickster identity of most gnomes. On the inside, Etterson is wholly human, and has all of the resultant greed, avarice, and necessary ingenuity to provide for both. "Money can't buy happiness. Luckily, for me, money '''is' happiness."'' Hooks Your Friendly Local Magic Store: Economy of scale allows Etterson to flood the market with a comparatively low production cost and thus can charge less for his product than the competition, thus drawing away their customers. If he is existant in your game, independent makers of magic items should logically charge 5-10% more for their product to simulate this effect. Furthermore, Etterson's convenient methods mean he can "ignore" the usual time restrictions on magic item production and forgo the XP cost; though highly powerful items command too niche a market to produce for beforehand, any custom-ordered item will be delivered on the next day. Of course, Etterson demands a hefty convenience fee for such speedily constructed items, above and on top of the price of the item itself... Category:GnomeCategory:WizardCategory:Complete AdventurerCategory:ExpertCategory:CR 12